Luke 5:12-39

English Standard Version

Jesus Cleanses a Leper

¹² While he was in one of the cities, ^(A)there came a man full of leprosy.^[a] And when he saw Jesus, he ^(B)fell on his face and begged him, “Lord, ^(C)if you will, you can make me clean.” ¹³ And Jesus^[b] stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him. ¹⁴ And he charged him ^(D)to tell no one, but “go and show ^(E)yourself to the priest, and ^(F)make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, ^(G)for a proof to them.” ^15 (H)But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. ¹⁶ But ^(I)he would withdraw to desolate places and ^(J)pray.

Jesus Heals a Paralytic

¹⁷ On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and ^(K)teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And ^(L)the power of the Lord was with him to heal.^{[c] 18 (M)}And behold, some men were bringing ^(N)on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus, ¹⁹ but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on ^(O)the roof and let him down with his bed ^(P)through the tiles into the midst before Jesus. ²⁰ And ^(Q)when he saw their faith, he said, “Man, ^(R)your sins are forgiven you.” ²¹ And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks ^(S)blasphemies? ^(T)Who can forgive sins but God alone?” ²² When Jesus ^(U)perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts? ²³ Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? ²⁴ But that you may know that ^(V)the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” ²⁵ And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, ^(W)glorifying God. ²⁶ And amazement seized them all, and they ^(X)glorified God and were filled ^(Y)with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.”

Jesus Calls Levi

^27 (Z)After this he went out and saw ^(AA)a tax collector named ^(AB)Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, “Follow me.” ²⁸ And ^(AC)leaving everything, he rose and followed him.

²⁹ And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company ^(AD)of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them. ³⁰ And the Pharisees and ^(AE)their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, ^(AF)“Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” ³¹ And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ^32 (AG)I have not come to call the righteous ^(AH)but sinners ^(AI)to repentance.”

A Question About Fasting

³³ And they said to him, ^(AJ)“The disciples of John ^(AK)fast often and ^(AL)offer prayers, ^(AM)and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink.” ³⁴ And Jesus said to them, ^(AN)“Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? ^35 (AO)The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and ^(AP)then they will fast in those days.” ³⁶ He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. ³⁷ And no one puts new wine into old ^(AQ)wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. ³⁸ But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. ³⁹ And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.’”^[d]